One, two, one, two, three, four
Yes I needed some time to get away
I needed some peace of mind
Some peace of mind that'll stay
So I thumbed it, now it's six in L.A.
Maybe a Greyhound could be my way

Police and niggers, that's right
Get outta my way
Don't need to buy none of your
Gold chains today
Now don't need no bracelets
Clamped in front of my back
Just need my ticket 'till then
Won't you cut me some slack

You're one in a million
Yeah that's what you are
You're one in a million babe
You're a shooting star
Maybe some day we'll see you
Before you make us cry
You know we tried to reach you
But you were much to high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high

Immigrants and fagots
They make no sense to me
They come to our country
And think they'll do as they please
Like start some mini-Iran
Or spread some fucking disease
And they talk so many God damn ways
It's all Greek to me

Well some say I'm lazy
And others say that's just me
Some say I'm crazy
I guess I'll always be
But it's been such a long time
Since I knew right from wrong
It's all the means to and end I'm
I keep it moving along
Hey, hey, hey, yeah

You're one in a million
You're a shooting star
You're one in a million babe
You know that you are
Maybe some day we'll see you
Before you make us cry
You know we tried to reach you
But you were much to high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high

Radicals and racists
Don't point your finger at me
I'm a small town white boy
Just tryin' to make ends meet
Don't need your religion
Don't watch that much TV
Just makin' my livin' baby
Well that's enough for me

You're one in a million
Yeah that's what you are
You're one in a million babe
You're a shooting star
Maybe some day we'll see you
Before you make us cry
You know we tried to reach you
But you were much too high
Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high yeah, yeah, yeah
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high
Much too high

84 Comments

General CommentThis is a highly emotional song for me. I have no clue as to what motivated Axl to lash out at the world, but the one thing I value above all else in art is sincerity. This tune paints a picture describing exactly the emotions of some "small town white boy" as he first sets foot in L.A., and encounters people and situations he is profoundly unfamiliar with and understandably frightened of (Rose is originally from small town Indiana).
Even if it is not autobiographical (it probably is), it is a stark portrait of a young man who has never interacted with anyone who wasn't white protestant and is freaked out by his first exposure to the hostile and apathetic "big city." Writers such as Cormac McCarthy, William Burroughs, and J G Ballard often wrote about psychopaths and the nadirs of human degradation, but that did not mean the authors themselves were sadistic, violent beasts. The object of art, so the saying goes, is to hold a mirror up to reality. "One in a Million" reflects a certain reality, not necessarily shared by the majority, nakedly and without the filter of political correctness.
Not all white people have it made in the shade. A lot of racism, in fact, arises from the anger that poor, disenfranchised whites feel. You spend your whole life hearing about how America is the greatest land of opportunity the world has ever seen, and yet you're still shit-poor, your family business reliant upon moonshine and methamphetamine, and people who've been in the country a month are treating you like scum? Damned right you're going to be angry and not entirely sure who to blame for your lot in life.
I don't care if this was purposefully controversial; it was poignant when I was twelve years old, it is godd---ded poignant now.

General CommentIf you read Axl's explanation on the cover of GN'R Lies, he explains that the song is an over generalisation and gives all the reasons why he wrote it. It's very true to some extent: I've had Indian shop owners giving me the evil eye in their shops like I don't belong there when he doesn't even speak proper English. I haven't been hassled by the cops, but my bro and his mates were pulled up once by some punk cops who tried to hold just about anything they could against them. And I've never had a dark guy try and sell me stolen goods... but I've had a dark guy in Nike shoes and jacket with a Sony CD player ask me for money for the train saying he's broke. I can only assume those items were stolen. I don't have anything against the groups mentioned in this song, but yeah... I guess I see where Axl's coming from to some extent. Where I live, I can walk through the city streets and a black guy will call me a "white c***", but when I retaliate with "f***head", I'm a racist all of a sudden and I have him and 20 of his mates beating the crap out of me.
I feel sorry for Axl because he felt he needed to write that song.

My InterpretationAwesome song about how white males are stereotyped by different groups and how those groups assign a set of beliefs to them, rather than treating them as individuals. The 2 salient stanzas are as follows:

Some say I'm lazy...and others say that's just me.
Some say I'm crazy. I guess I'll always be.
But it's been such a long time
since I knew right from wrong
It's all a means to and end
I keep it moving along

Radicals and Racists
Don't point your fingers at me
I'm a small town white boy
Just tryin' to make ends meet
Don't need your religion
Don't watch that much TV
Just makin a living baby
And that's enough for me

It's not surprising that this song is misunderstood as a racist looking at looking at the world rather than everyone with an ax to grind (Niggers, Cops, Immigrants, Faggots, Radicals and Racists) projecting their own prejudices. Once you get past the hot button words and listen to the lyrics, the meaning of the song is plain as day

General CommentI feel this song is talking about a guy who gets pissed off at the world, and then kind of thinks he's above it. Then there is what people are saying to him, with the whole your one in a million deal, it's like he's thinking he's better than everyone else everywhere, angry and hateful because people haven't treated him with respect. People are saying "hold on there, your feeling pretty high and mighty, but come back down a bit before you end up getting yourself hurt" all the racial slurs and such are just showing his despise for the HUMAN race, not any one in particular. The line about being a smalltown whiteboy is like saying that you judge me and hate me for what i am, well, i hate all of you. He hates the "boxes" that people are put in, and doesn't feel like it's fair, but if they're going to do it to him, he's going to give it right back. I really like this song, and listen to it almost daily, but i don't think it's meant to disrespect anybody, but more show them that disrespect is there, that people judge each other.

This song is him giving his views, which would be perceived by many people as racist and homophobic etc. When he says 'don't point your finger at me' he is telling people who are ready to attach him for the views he has just expressed to back off. He does have the right to freedom of speech after all even if the things he says are deeply offensive and ignorant.

I think as well as a big 'fuck you' to political correctness this song was probably intended to raise loads of controversy and publicity for GnR.

General CommentThis song is about all the thing that were pissing off axe at the time when he was trying to make. So i tumb it do to sixth and la maybe a grayhound could be my way. This was wrtten when he was poor and trying to make it. did anyone know that axe was in the army? Its true he was a tanker!!!!

General CommentThis song came out when I was in the 8th grade and I thought it was fucking insane for the lyrical content, and if I said I loved it people would judge me a racist but I am now 26 and I think it is fucking genius. Also I've never seen Mr. Roses Balls but I'm guessing they are fucking huge.